halloweenspecialsfandomcom-20200214-history
Thriller
"Thriller" is a song recorded by American recording artist , composed by , and produced by . It is the seventh and final single from his sixth studio album of the same name. It was released on November 12, 1983 in most countries and January 23, 1984 in the United States by . The song has appeared on multiple greatest hits compilation albums from Jackson, including HIStory (1995), Number Ones (2003), (2005), and Michael Jackson's This Is It (2009), and it was remixed to the Immortal album in 2011. The song's instruments include a baseline and synthesizer. In the song, sound effects such as a creaking door, thunder, feet walking on wooden planks, winds and howling dogs can be heard, and the lyrics contain frightening themes and elements. "Thriller" received positive reviews from critics, though the song was outshone by its music video. "Thriller" became Jackson's seventh top-ten single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Chart from the album, while reaching the top of the charts in France and Belgium and the top ten in other countries. "Thriller" was adapted into a highly successful music video, known independently as Michael Jackson's Thriller. At fourteen minutes the video is substantially longer than the song, which ties together a narrative featuring Jackson and actress in a setting heavily inspired by horror films of the 1950s. In the video's most iconic scene, Jackson leads other actors costumed as zombies in a choreographed dance routine. Though it garnered some criticism for its occult theme and violent imagery, the video was immediately popular and received high critical acclaim, being nominated for six in 1984 and winning three. In 2009 it was added to the by the , the first music video ever selected. "Thriller" has been covered by multiple recording artists since its release in 1984, including (with ), , , and . Lyrics It's close to midnight Something evil's lurkin'in the dark Under the moonlight You see a sight that almost stops your heart You try to scream But terror takes the sound before you make it You start to freeze As horror looks you right between the eyes You're paralyzed 'Cause this is thriller Thriller at night And no one's gonna save you From the beast about to strike You know it's thriller Thriller at night You're fighting for your life Inside a killer Thriller tonight, yeah You hear the door slam And realize there's nowhere left to run You feel the cold hand And wonder if you'll ever see the sun You close your eyes And hope that this is just imagination But all the while You hear a creature creepin' up behind You're outta time 'Cause this is thriller Thriller at night There ain't no second chance Against the thing with the forty eyes, girl Thriller Thriller at night You're fighting for your life Inside a killer Thriller tonight Night creatures callin' The dead start to walk in their masquerade There's no escaping the jaws of the alien this time (They're open wide) This is the end of your life They're out to get you There's demons closing in on every side They will possess you Unless you change that number on your dial Now is the time For you and I to cuddle close together, yeah All through the night I'll save you from the terror on the screen I'll make you see That this is thriller Thriller at night 'Cause I can thrill you more Than any ghoul would ever dare try (Thriller) (Thriller at night) So let me hold you tight And share a (Killer, diller, chiller) (Thriller here tonight) 'Cause this is thriller Thriller at night Girl, I can thrill you more Than any ghoul would ever dare try (Thriller) (Thriller at night) So let me hold you tight And share a (Killer, thriller) I'm gonna thrill you tonight Darkness falls across the land The midnight hour is close at hand Creatures crawl in search of blood To terrorize y'alls neighborhood And whosoever shall be found Without the soul for getting down Must stand and face the hounds of hell And rot inside a corpse's shell I'm gonna thrill you tonight (Thriller, thriller) I'm gonna thrill you tonight (Thriller night, thriller)) I'm gonna thrill you tonight Ooh, babe, I'm gonna thrill you tonight Thriller at night, babe The foulest stench is in the air The funk of forty thousand years And grizzly ghouls from every tomb Are closing in to seal your doom And though you fight to stay alive Your body starts to shiver For no mere mortal can resist The evil of the thriller Background "Thriller" was written by Rod Temperton, and produced by Quincy Jones. It was originally titled "Starlight", contrary to other reports of the title "Starlight Love". While the song was titled "Starlight", the song's hook lyrics were "Starlight! Starlight sun...", but after the song was changed to "Thriller" the hook was rewritten to "Thriller! In the night...".Temperton commented, While Temperton was writing "Thriller" he stated that he'd "always envisioned" a "talking section at the end" on the song, but did not really know what "to do with it", until deciding "to have somebody, a famous voice, in the horror genre, to do this vocal." Jones' then-wife, , who knew , suggested Price for the vocal part, which Price agreed to do. Recording "Thriller", along with other songs from Thriller, was recorded by Jackson over the course of eight weeks, in 1982. Jackson recorded the song at on in Los Angeles, California. Bruce Swedien, the song's engineer, said of the song being recorded, Swedien and Jones stated that Vincent Price recorded his introduction and voice-over rap for the song in two takes; Jones, acknowledging that doing a voice-over for a song is "difficult", praised Price and described his recording takes as being "fabulous". Swedien said of Jackson recording the song, that, "I tried all sorts of things with Michael – for instance, he would sing the main vocal part and we'd double it one time and then I'd ask him to step away from the mic and do it a third time and that really changed the acoustics in the room so it gave Michael's vocals a unique character … We recorded some of those background vocals in the shower stall at Westlake." Composition "Thriller" is considered a funk disco song. Set in the key of C Modern Dorian, its instrumentation consists of synthesizer, guitar, trumpet, flugelhorn, saxophone, flute and trombone. The song has a moderate tempo of 118 beats per minute. The lyrics and sound effects on "Thriller" pertain to frightful elements and themes. Throughout the song, sound effects such as a creaking door, thunder, feet walking on wooden planks, winds and howling dogs can be heard. , a sound effects editor for "Thriller", said that, "Things like the lightning may have come from old Hollywood movies – we'll never know which movies – but the best sound-effects editors do go out in the desert and find a coyote, so I have a feeling that was a real howl." The backing track, especially the bassline, has certain similarities to the 1981 number-one R&B hit " " by . Critical reception "Thriller" received positive reviews from contemporary music critics. Ashley Lasimone, of AOL's Spinner.com noted that "Thriller" "became a signature for Jackson" and described "the groove of its bassline, paired with Michael's killer vocals and sleek moves" as having had "produced a frighteningly great single." Jon Pareles, of The New York Times, noted that Thriller''s tracks, "Billie Jean", "Beat It", "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "the movie in the song 'Thriller'", were the songs, unlike the "fluff" "P.Y.T.", that were "the hits that made ''Thriller a world-beater; along with Mr. Jackson's stage and video presence, listeners must have identified with his willingness to admit terror." Ann Powers, of the Los Angeles Times, described "Thriller" as being a song that was "adequately groovy" with a "funked-out beat" with lyrics that are "seemingly lifted from some little kid's 'scary storybook'". After Jackson's death, AOL's Radio Blog released a list, titled "10 Best Michael Jackson Songs", which placed "Thriller" at number one. In 2009 Melissa Cabrera, of AOL Radio Blogs, listed "Thriller" as being the fourth best song on their "Top 100 '80s Songs" list. Eliot Glazer, AOL's Radio Blogs, placed "Thriller" at number one on a list titled "Top 1984 Songs". "Thriller" was also listed at number two on the "10 Best Halloween Songs" and "10 Best Party Songs" lists by AOLs Radio Blog. Chart performance Prior to "Thriller"'s official airplay release, it charted and peaked at number one on Billboard's Dance Music/Club Play Singles Chart in 1983. Released on January 23, 1984, "Thriller" became Jackson's seventh and last ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top-ten single from his Thriller album. In "Thriller"'s second week of release, Billboard issue date February 11, 1984, the song charted at number 20 on the Hot 100. The song entered the top ten the following week at number seven. One week later, it reached number four, what would become its peak position. The song was certified platinum by the on December 4, 1989, for sales of over one million physical units in the U.S. (the requirement for gold and platinum singles was lowered after 1989). It has also a further 3,160,000 copies in digital downloads by October 2012 in the US. For the issue date February 25, 1984, "Thriller" charted at number 19 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart. The following week, the song placed at number five. On March 10, 1984, it charted at number 3, where it peaked. "Thriller" peaked at number 24 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart. "Thriller" debuted on the on November 19, 1983 at number 24, and the following week charted at number ten, where it peaked; the song appeared on the chart for 25 weeks. Beginning on February 5, 1984, "Thriller" peaked on the French Singles Chart at number one and topped the chart for four consecutive weeks. "Thriller" also topped the Belgian VRT Top 30 Chart for two weeks in January 1984. Following Jackson's death in 2009, his music experienced a surge in popularity. In the week of Jackson's death, "Thriller" was his best-selling track in the US, with sales of 167,000 copies on the ''Billboard'' Hot Digital Singles Chart. On July 11, 2009, "Thriller" charted on the Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart at number two (its peak), and the song remained in the charts' top ten for three consecutive weeks. In the United Kingdom, the song charted at number 23 the week of Jackson's death. The following week, the song reached its peak at number 12 on the UK Single Chart. On July 12, 2009, "Thriller" peaked at number two on the and was later certified gold by the . "Thriller" reached at number three on the Australian ARIA Chart and and topped the Spanish Singles Charts for one week. The song also placed within the top ten on the , Norwegian Singles Chart and , at number nine, number seven and number eight respectively. "Thriller" also landed at number 25 on the . In the third week of July, "Thriller" peaked at number 11 in Finland. Music video The music video, directed by , was filmed in various locations in New York and Los Angeles. The music video was first broadcast on television on December 2, 1983. Contrary to reports of $800,000 to $1 million dollar production budgets, Landis stated that the music video was made for $500,000. Jackson said of making the music video, in an interview that aired on December 11, 1999, for MTV's 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made: The music video of the song also included on the video albums: , , Number Ones, on the bonus DVD of and . Following the release of the music video, a 45 minute documentary was released that provided candid glimpses behind the scenes of the music video's production. Entitled Making Michael Jackson's Thriller, it, like the music video, was shown heavily on MTV for a time and was the top-selling home-video release of all time at one point, with over nine million copies sold. MTV paid $250,000 for the exclusive rights to show the documentary; Showtime paid $300,000 for pay-cable rights; and reportedly paid $500,000 to market the cassette, in a profit participation agreement. Concept On a night set in the 1950s, the video opens with a person named Michael driving in his car. Michael and his unnamed date ( ) run out of gas near a dark wooded area. They walk off into the forest, and Michael asks her if she would be his "Girl"/( ), she accepts and he gives her a ring. He warns her, however, that he is "different" than other guys. A full moon appears, and Michael begins convulsing in agony, transforming into a werecat. His date runs away in terror, but the werecat catches up to her, knocking her down and begins lunging at her with his claws. The scene then cuts to a modern-day movie theater where Michael and his date, along with a repulsed audience, are actually watching the scene unfold in a movie called Thriller. Michael's date leaves the theater as Michael hands his popcorn to a stranger, catches up to her, and assures her that "It's only a movie". Some debate follows as to whether or not she was scared by the movie: she denies it, but Michael disagrees. They then walk down a foggy road as Michael teases her by singing the verses of "Thriller". They pass a nearby graveyard, in which zombies begin to rise out of their caskets as Vincent Price performs his soliloquy. The zombies corner Michael and his date threateningly, and suddenly, Michael becomes a zombie himself. The zombies then break into an elaborate song and dance number, followed by the main chorus of "Thriller" (during which Michael was reverted to human form), frightening his date to the point where she runs for cover. Michael (who was somehow turned back into a zombie) and his fellow corpses back the frightened girl into the corner of a nearby abandoned house. Michael then reaches for his date's throat as she lets out a bloodcurdling scream, only to awake and realize it was all a dream. Michael then offers to take her home, and she happily obliges. As they walk out of the house, Michael eerily looks at the camera, thus revealing his yellow werecat eyes from the opening scene, as Price offers one last haunting laugh. Reception Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly commented on the music video, "Every aspect of the 14-minute horror musical, directed with creepy-comical zest by John Landis, is beyond iconic, from Michael's red leather ensemble to the immortal (no pun) herky-jerky zombie dance and bwah-ha-ha Vincent Price narration. Though the video was met with widespread praise, it was also criticized for its content. In 1984, the National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV) classified more than half of 200 MTV music videos surveyed as "too violent". Both "Thriller" and Jackson's duet with , " " made the list. The quoted Dr. , chairman of the NCTV, as saying, "It's not hard to imagine young viewers after seeing 'Thriller' saying, 'Gee, if Michael Jackson can terrorize his girlfriend, why can't I do it too?' The music video was nominated for six awards at the , winning three out of six of the nominations. "Thriller" won Viewers Choice, Best Overall Performance and Best Choreography—but lost Best Concept Video, Best Male Video and Video Of The Year. The music video was listed as the "Greatest Video" on VH1's "VH1: 100 Greatest Videos" in 2001. MTV listed the music video as being the "Greatest Music Video Ever Made" on their list, "MTV: 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made" in 1999. In July 2011, the music video was named one of "The 30 All-TIME Best Music Videos" by ''TIME'' magazine. Live performances Jackson performed "Thriller" on all three of his solo world concert tours. From the Dangerous Tour onwards, half the song was always performed by a masked backup dancer as Jackson prepared for his next song as part of a stage illusion. Despite Jackson performing multiple songs from his Thriller album, "Thriller" was not included on set list during their Victory Tour in 1984, as he wasn't satisfied with the way the song sounded live. Jackson performed "Thriller" during his first world tour as a solo artist, the Bad world tour, lasting sixteen months, from 1987 to 1989, for a total of 123 shows. During the Bad tour, in both legs, the jacket had flashing lights in the middle of the song and at the end. An impersonator was only used for the introduction of the song; a masked dancer emerges from the costume tent at the side of the stage, and goes back in hiding while Jackson himself, also masked at first, swings down from a rope on the other side of the stage before taking off his mask. "Thriller" was also performed during Jackson's second world tour, the , where stage illusions were used to transition between "Thriller" and " ". In the middle of "Thriller", Jackson secretly switched places with a masked backup dancer who finishes the song appearing as Jackson prepares for "Billie Jean". When the song ends, Jackson appears fully dressed on the upper floor as "Billie Jean" begins. Jackson performed "Thriller" for all of his 82 shows during his third, and final, world tour, the . Once again, a masked dancer posing as Jackson was used as a stage illusion, this time to transition between "Thriller" and " ". As with the Dangerous tour, Jackson switches with the background dancer in the middle of the song. At the end of "Thriller", the masked dancer is taken by the zombie dancers into a coffin where it appears he is impaled with spikes and burned. Jackson would appear at the side of the stage in a cherry-picker, starting off "Beat It". Jackson had planned to perform "Thriller" during his 50-show concert series, which would have been his fourth concert tour, entitled This Is It from 2009 to 2010. For Jackson's performance of the song, he had planned for the stage that he was to perform on to be set up with a background that looked like a "graveyard" (which was a brief setting in the music video) with 3-D effects. According to a setlist that was released in March 2009, "Thriller" was to close out the 16-song show, although the film , which documents the concert series, lists 18 songs and " " as the closing song for the planned shows. Cover versions ;1980s *In 1984, recorded a parody titled "Thinner" that was shown at the premiere of , the video lasts exactly 5 minutes and at the end of a scene that has not parody the original video, where Michael (Lenny) wakes up screaming and it is revealed that it was all a dream, his mother wakes up screaming and quiet, then she looks at the camera and his eyes are yellow, like the final scene of the original video. *In 1989, American composer and recorded an orchestra version of the song. ;2000s *In 2000, British death metal band covered the song on their album . *In 2001, American-born Australian singer covered the song on a complication album, . *In 2003, Scottish rock band recorded "Thriller" for their . *In 2003, German a cappella group Maybebop covered the song for their album Heiße Luft. *In 2004, English electronic music group sampled "Thriller" on their The Way It Is. *In 2007, covered "Thriller". Amos Barshad and Nick Catucci, of NYMag.com, commented that "before you dismiss" the song, if you "give it a listen", Brown’s "louche, drugged-out reinvention is actually pretty great." *In 2008, German group Wise Guys recorded an a cappella version of the song as "Schiller" for their tenth album Frei!. The stage choreography based on Michael Jackson's music video and member Ferenc also recites a part of 's . *In 2008, "Thriller" was also covered by , lead singer of and . *In 2008, industrial metal band covered Jackson's song for their album . *In 2008, a remix of ' song "When I Grow Up", entitled the "Darkchild Remix" and featuring rappers Diddy, and , contains elements of "Thriller" heavily sampled throughout the remix, most noticeably in the song's introduction. *In October 2009, covered "Thriller" for BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge. It was later used for BBC's end montage to its football tournament coverage. ;2010s *In 2011, covered the song in an a cappella mash-up tribute along with several other Michael Jackson songs over pre-recorded backing vocals. *In 2013, Nu Dimension covered the song during the gala show . Appearances in other media music video, particularly the songs dance routine in the video, have been referenced in television series and films including Donga (1985), (1988), (1991), (2004), (2004), (2006), I Am Zombie Man (2007) and (2007), The Disney Channel Show - A.N.T. Farm (Episode - "infuANTces", February 2013) and in an episode of television show, Alvin & the Chipmunks. The song is briefly featured in film {W|Doogal}} (2006) and the songs lyrics were sung by the characters in an episode, entitled "Soultaker" on the television series . The zombie gorillas did a similar dance routine in the video for "Clint Eastwood" by . did the dance routine in her video "Disturbia". A prison in Cebu, Philippines became famous after releasing a YouTube video where its inmates reenacted and performed the "Thriller" dance. In 1997, had an episode, " ", which parodies the song and the video. said in a January 2002 interview that if their song "My Elastic Eye" is played on large speakers, the bass would resemble "Thriller". Scottish band released a bhangra remix of "Thriller" to which dance act Signature danced to it in their semi-final performance in the second series of Britain's Got Talent in May 2008. In 2011, the cast of American musical TV series Glee performed "Thriller" as a mash up with "Heads Will Roll" by in episode " ". Pop singer made a reference to "Thriller" in her music video for " " (2011). In the ending of her video actor Guillermo Díaz leads Spears out of the room. He then turns to the camera with glowing red eyes and his laugh is heard, similar to Vincent Price. In the Halloween episode of Timberwolf High, Jimmy starts doing the "Thriller" dance with Tracy during the song from the mix up with the square dance from and " " by . The video has been spoofed on Thriller Night, a 6-minute short film parody of "Thriller", directed by Gary Trousdale and featuring the characters of the ''Shrek'' film series. It released on September 13, 2011, on the Scared Shrekless DVD. It has also been spoofed on YouTube web series Annoying Orange by the titular character, in the episode "Chiller". 's game features a Michael Jackson zombie, in which he stops and zombies pop out of the ground and they do the dance moves to "Thriller". The zombie's sprite was later replaced with a disco zombie at the request of Jackson's estate. The song, "Wolf-i-fied!" from episode "Door Jammed" is presented in such a way as to have been influenced heavily by Michael Jackson's Thriller; the song even starts out with a similar rap to Vincent Price's. Personnel * Written and composed by Rod Temperton * Produced by Quincy Jones * Michael Jackson: Solo and background vocals * Vincent Price: Drums **Featuring: Rap by Vincent Price (Not featured on original edited single version) * Greg Phillinganes, Rod Temperton & Brian Banks: Synthesizers * Anthony Marinelli: Synthesizer programming * David Williams: Guitar * Jerry Hey, Gary Grant: Trumpets, flugelhorns * Larry Williams: Saxophone, flute * Bill Reichenbach: Trombone * Vocal, rhythm and synthesizer arrangement by Rod Temperton * Horn arrangement by Jerry Hey * Effects by Bruce Cannon and Bruce Swedien Category:Songs